Making a difference
View(s):The first time I heard of making a difference in the context of volunteering was in school: a teacher said to us, “Think globally, act locally.” Although that phrase has stuck in my mind since, it wasn’t until recently that I realized the power of this slogan.
At a five- day international peace conference held in July (Initiative For Peace 2013), I heard 7 remarkable individuals speak about their experiences back home. Each of them were highschool students, who had battled everything from politicians to prejudiced neighbours to make a difference in their communities.
The most awe- inspiring was an 18 year old boy from Netherlands who joined his school’s student union at the age of 10. By 12 he was on the committee, by 14 he was President and was protesting along with other citizens on the street to bring much- needed change to the national education system. Not only did they bring change to the system, he was also asked to come and work for the Secretary to the Minister of Education when he was only 17, which he did for a year.
A girl from the United States spoke about how she and her friends had started a Student’s Volunteer Society at school. At first, the school administration did not grant permission to form an organization, so they met unofficially but after being functional for a year they convinced the school to allow them to register as a student society. During that first year, they recruited as many individuals as they could and she described how they would get up at 5am in the freezing Iowa winter to help at soup kitchens in Homeless’ Shelters. By the time she left for another school, the society was flourishing.
Another heart- warming tale came from a boy from Vietnam. He came from a home filled with hardship but he realized that the indigenous groups settled in the edge of the forests were much more disadvantaged because of the logging practice of a multi- national company. He organised a poster campaign that brought awareness to the larger society of the plight of these innocent people. As per his last update, discussions were pending between the government and the company about the lives of these groups. But the story that made the biggest impact on me was also the simplest.
This was a 17 year old girl, also from Netherlands, who had become a vegetarian to save the life of at least one animal. But her story was not about that; the story was about how she joined 6 other students at her high- school to create a miniature forest on the rooftop of her school. They planted trees there because her school didn’t have much garden- space because it was in the middle of the city. By spending her precious free time to plant one tree, she contributed to reduce global warming and increase oxygen production.
Her actions weren’t loud; they may not have even been felt. But the fact that she did it makes all the difference to her cause.
This article was written by a Stitch volunteer. For more information visit ww.stitchmovement.com or find us on Facebook or Twitter (ID: StitchMovement)